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Fletcher could be extradited under Tonga-US extradition treaty but involves “complex legal issues”, AG says

By
Kalino Latu
-

The US murder suspect that escaped a Police cell in Tonga before he turned up in American Samoa on Tuesday could be extradited to Tonga under an extradition treaty between the kingdom and the United States.

And Tonga have applied for “a provisional arrest warrant of the Accused to be issued by the United States Federal Court, pending a formal application for extradition to be sent through diplomatic channels” on October 5.

But this was not an easy process and Tonga’s Attorney General’s Office warned it could take much longer than expected.

Dean Jay Fletcher, 54, was facing murder charges in Vava’u in connection with the death of his Canadian wife, Patricia Linne Kearney on 6 July 2016, at Neiafu, Vava’u.

While awaiting his trial he escaped on his yacht from police custody on 29 September 2016.

A Police hunt shortly located him but after threatening about himself and burning the Police boat Vava’u Police held back.

On Tuesday Fletcher turned up in Pago pago where he was arrested for breaching the country’s custom law.

Tonga’s Office of the Attorney General has contacted the United States authority to return Fletcher to Tonga to face his murder charges.

American Samoa is part of the United States.

“After being informed by the Police Commissioner that the Accused had absconded from Tonga, and arrived at American Samoa, this Office made immediate contact on 4 October 2016 with counterparts at the United States Department of Justice in Washington D.C., USA, and American Samoa, in order to commence an extradition process with a view to return the Accused to the Kingdom to be tried for the charges laid against him”, a statement from the AG Office said.

Fletcher was also charged with manslaughter or causing grievous harm, interference with the course of justice, and two counts of escape from lawful custody of Tonga Police, the statement said.

“Tonga and the United States are a party to an extradition treaty that was re-affirmed on 13 April 1977 to apply between Tonga and the United States. This Treaty applies to American Samoa as a territory of the United States.

“The Attorney General’s Office is now awaiting advice from United States authorities on the progress of its application for a provisional arrest warrant against the Accused, and confirmation of the process and legal requirements for an extradition request to the United States to return the Accused from American Samoa”, it said.

“At the same time this Office is currently preparing the normal information required for a formal extradition request for the Accused to be sent through diplomatic channels to the United States Government once the process and information required is confirmed from the United States authorities.

“Extradition is a legally complicated process that would involve determination of complex legal issues through all legal avenues in foreign courts, and therefore it is likely to take some time to complete”.

Frustration mounts for stranded Greeks in Tonga as food and money runs out

By
Kalino Latu
-

The Greek tourists whose passports were confiscated by the Tongan Police have no food and money while they wait to be allowed to leave the kingdom.

As Kaniva News reported this morning, the tourists were about to board a plane from Tonga to Auckland last Wednesday when Immigration New Zealand notified Tongan Police that six of the Greek passports had been reported stolen or lost to Interpol, while one failed a scan test.

A reliable Tongan government source has confirmed Tongan Police were still investigating the Greek passports.

The case has been linked to a joint operation conducted by the international law enforcement agencies, the source said.

The manager of the Green Lodge in Tofoa, Tongatapu where the tourists were staying came forward after Kaniva News ran the story.

Tupou’ahau Fungavaka said she and his family had offered to provide the Greeks accommodation and food under a credit deal since they were returned from the airport.

“We have agreed they would pay me back and they said they would receive some money from Greece today and we are waiting for it,” Fungavaka said.

She said one of them was sick and she had offered to pay for his medication.

One of the tourists was a young boy she thought was about the age of somebody in class five at Primary School, Fungavaka said.

“Last night I told them we have run out of money and can no longer provide them with the food they want,” she said.

“I told them they would have to eat together with us.

“The only food we have is soup and Tongan food.”

She said the Greeks were dying to return home for their studies and work, but they were still waiting for their passports.

None of them spoke English, the second official language in Tonga, which is used for communication with other ethnicities.

Fungavaka said an interpreter from overseas was helping their communication with the Greeks via telephone.

She was concerned about who would repay her for the cost of housing and feeding the tourists if they were unable to return home and did not receive the promised financial assistance.

She wanted to know whether or not the Tongan government could help in situation like this.

The main points

  • The Greek tourists whose passports were confiscated by the Tongan Police have no food and money while they wait for permission to leave the kingdom.
  • The tourists were about to board a plane from Tonga to Auckland when Immigration New Zealand notified Tongan Police that six of the Greek passports had been reported stolen or lost to Interpol, while one failed a scan test.
  • Tupou’ahau Fungavaka, the owner of the Green Lodge in Tofoa, Tongatapu where the tourists are staying, said she and his family had offered to provide the Greeks with accommodation and food under a credit deal.
  • But she said that last night she told the tourists they had run out of money.

For more information

Investigation after Greek passports seized in Tonga following complaint by Immigration NZ

 

Chinese tourists enter Tonga on “visa on arrival” not “without visa” government clarifies

By
Kalino Latu
-

The Tongan government wanted to clarify what it described as misunderstanding by critics who opposed the government’s visa policy change to help increase the number of Chinese tourists coming to Tonga.

China and Tonga have reviewed their visa policies granting their tourists a 30-day entry visa upon arrival in both countries.

The move was to fast-track the kingdom’s tourism, trade and investment developments.

But some critics took it wrongly describing it on social media as an opportunity for thousands of Chinese to flock the kingdom “without visa”.

Tonga’s Immigration CEO Kulufeinga ‘Anisi Bloomfield said this was wrong and that all Chinese tourists coming to Tonga were subjected to a visa that must be granted upon their arrival at Fu’amotu International Airport.

The “visa is stamped on arrival”, he told Kaniva News.

When their visas expired they have to leave Tonga or they would be treated as overstayers.

The issue was also raised in Parliament this week with Lord Nuku saying  he was concerned at the government policy which allowed tourists to come to Tonga without visa (“ta’e visa”).

However the Prime Minister corrected the noble and said the government has no policy that allowed tourists to come to  Tonga “without visa”.

The Health Minister joined the discussion and said it appeared there was a problem with the Tongan translation of  the phrases “visa on arrival” or “visa waiver”. They both translated into Tongan as “ta’e visa” which literally means in English “without visa”.

The Whole House Committee chair agreed the translation was wrong.

The Prime Minister said all tourists must be checked out at the airport before issuing their visa.

They have to convince the immigration staff that they were genuine tourists with no intention to work or stay after their visas expired.

Other Pacific countries

Tonga’s Minister of Health Saia Piukala told us he was surprised to find out Tonga was too late in moving to offer this tourism opportunity to big countries of the world.

He said they met with Pacific Foreign Affair Ministers in New York last month and the Russian minister thanked some of these Pacific nations including Fiji, Samoa and Vanuatu for allowing the Russians to come to their countries on “visa on arrival”.

“Fiji and Samoa always move ahead of us especially when it comes to deal with tourism on international level”, Hon Piukala said.

The European Union has allowed Tonga to enter their member countries on “visa on arrival”, the minister said.

Before that Tongans overseas had to go to London to apply for a visa so that they could enter these countries.

He said the gist of the idea was that for the big countries like China to reduce the time and costs their tourist people incurred after seeking for visas so they can travel to Tonga.

The Minister said the Chinese have to travel to Beijing to apply for a visa that only cost them US$65 to come to Tonga.

“You see they would spend more money on their travel to Beijing just to get the US$65 dollar visa. It does not make sense”, Hon Piukala said.

China is a big country and such travelling could be compared to travelling from Tonga to New Zealand and one could imagine the time and financial costs involved, he said.

China’s growing interest in Tonga Tourism

The following is a statement released by Tonga Tourism to Kaniva and other media:

A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed in Tonga in July 2015 by the Chairman of the China National Tourism Administration, His Excellency, Mr. Li Jinzao and the former Minister of Infrastructure and Tourism, to implement a Roadmap for Tourism Development in the Kingdom.

The MOU has opened up an important milestone and chapter in Tonga’s history and tourism, and has strengthened and expedited intercultural dialogue and exchanges between the two countries.

Chinese Travel Agents and Tour Operators were brought into Tonga immediately after the signing of the MOU to inspect facilities and tourist related services in preparation for Chinese Tourist arrivals.

Both Governments have also changed their visa policy to grant Chinese Tourists a 30-day entry visa upon arrival in the Kingdom and vice-versa. It is an attempt to fast-track the Kingdom’s Tourism, Trade and Investment developments.

Tonga has already participated in two important tourism meetings hosted by China in May and September this year. The International Island Tourism Conference held in September concluded with Tonga signing a Friendship and Collaboration Agreement with the Mayor of Zhoushan  City, Wen Nuan.Tonga was represented at the conference by the Deputy CEO for Tourism, Mr. Sione Finau Moala-Mafi, the First Secretary at the Tonga Embassy in Beijing, Mr. Tupou Vaipulu, Lady ‘Eseta Fusitua  and Mrs. Pulotu Palu of Palu Aviation. Tonga-China’s Commissioner for Trade and Tourism, Mr. Tony Chen and his staff, including Ms. Satua Tuakoi, Tevita Pasi were also in attendance. The conference gave Tonga another opportunity to promote and strengthen its relationship with the Chinese tourist market.

Alongside the international Conference, a Tourism Exhibition was held and Tonga was able to showcase what it can offer, especially its unique cultural heritage and marina activities.

Chinese investors had also expressed an interest in developing Five star Resorts and Hotels and alternative air travel routes. They are looking into the possibility of direct flights from Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai and Zhoushan to Tonga.

This will certainly reduce travel hours from 15 to 9 hours and avoid the hassle of obtaining transit or stopover visas in other countries including New Zealand. Tonga’s revised visa policy for Chinese tourists has been regarded as a significant bonus making travel to Tonga for Chinese nationals a lot easier and convenient. It is possible that Tonga could become a Hub for Chinese tourists to the Pacific Region.

The Tonga Ministry of Tourism is optimistic that the continuing exchanges between the Kingdom of Tonga and the People’s Republic of China will continue to be strengthened to boost economic development and help Tongans who depend heavily on tourism for their livelihood.

Investigation after Greek passports seized in Tonga following complaint by Immigration NZ

By
Kalino Latu
-

An investigation was underway in Tonga after Police confiscated passports that belonged to seven Greek tourists who attempted to board a flight from Tongatapu to Auckland.

Six of the passports were reported to Interpol while the rest failed a test requirement.

This has been confirmed to Kaniva News in an email from Immigration New Zealand this morning.

The email read: “Immigration New Zealand can confirm that on 28 September, seven passengers holding Greek passports were prevented from boarding a flight from Tongatapu Airport to Auckland. Six of the seven passports were recorded as stolen or lost with Interpol and the seventh passport failed a basic passport scan. All passports are with Tongan Police for further investigation”.

We have learnt the Greeks were still in Tonga for more than a week now and none of them speaks English, the second official language Tonga used to communicate with other ethnic groups.

DNA testing shows Polynesians take Taiwan’s side in the Pacific

By
Philip Cass
-

With China and Taiwan competing for the affections – and votes in the UN – of Pacific nations, new research shows that Pacific Islanders may have more in common with Taiwan than anybody had previously imagined.

New research claims that the people of the Pacific did not originate among the Papuan people of New Guinea, as originally thought, but in Taiwan.

And Australian archaeologist Professor Matthew Spriggs, from the Australian National University said the researchers had “cracked the problem of the origin of Pacific Islanders, often posed as the ‘origin of the Polynesians’.”

The first modern humans are thought to have spread from South East Asia to Indonesia, New Guinea and Australia about 40,000 years ago.

This has been described as the last great movement of humans into previously uninhabited territory.

However, people did not settle in other parts of what are now referred to as Melanesia and Polynesia until about 1000 BC, travelling in the first boats capable of long distance sea travel.

The settlers brought distinctive pottery with them. Referred to by archeaologists as Lapita pottery, the earthenware containers have given their name to the ancient people, whose real identity has been lost.

As reported recently in Kaniva News last month, Canadian archaeologist Professor David Burley from Simon Fraser University in Vancouver  used the presence of Lapita pottery to name Nukulela  in Tonga as the starting point of the Polynesian civilisation.

Researchers in Australia, Germany and the Harvard Medical School in the United States tested the genomes taken from the remains of four people who lived in Tonga and Vanuatu between 2700 and 3100 years ago. None of the remains showed any trace of Papuan DNA.

They then compared these with DNA from 778 volunteers living in the islands and other places in East Asia and Oceania.

This showed that all four skeletons contain unique DNA that no longer exists, but is similar to that found in Aboriginal groups from Taiwan and some northern Philippine populations.

“The first people who got to Vanuatu were these Asian populations,” Professor Spriggs said.

The findings were published in the prestigious American journal, Nature.

Professor Spriggs, who was one of several co-authors of the paper, said the Lapita culture in the western Pacific developed from the migration of farmers from the South East Asian islands about 5500 years ago.

It spread through the Philippines and Eastern Indonesia about 4000 years ago and 1000 years later it spread from the islands off New Guinea’s eastern end through the Solomons, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, Fiji and on to Tonga and Samoa.

About 1000 years ago the migration spread from Western Polynesia to Hawai’i, Easter Island and finally to New Zealand about 700 years ago.

A second wave of settlers from Taiwan appear to have settled in New Guinea and intermingled with the local people. Later the descendants of these people moved into the central Pacific and intermarried with the descendants of the first wave of migration.

The main points

  • New research claims that the people of the Pacific did not originate in New Guinea, as originally thought, but in Taiwan.
  • Researchers tested DNA from the remains of four people who lived in Tonga and Vanuatu about 3000 years ago and compared it with DNA from volunteers living in the islands and other places in East Asia and the Pacific.
  • Analysis showed the DNA of the volunteers was similar to that found in Aboriginal groups from Taiwan and some northern Philippine populations.
  • The research was published in the prestigious American journal Nature.

For more information

Genomic insights into the peopling of the Southwest Pacific (Nature)

DNA reveals Lapita ancestors of Pacific Islanders came from Asia (ABC)

The first great seafarers: DNA from ancient skeletons reveals the Polynesians may have come from Taiwan 5,000 years ago (Daily Mail)

Flying laser beams help Canadian team discover long lost historical sites (Kaniva News)

MV ʻOtuangaʻofa to resume service next week

By
Kalino Latu
-

The MV ʻOtu Angaʻofa will be resuming service next week after being suspended in June due to mechanical failure.

The vessel arrived in Fiji two weeks ago to replace its rudder before returning to Tonga

It was expected to arrive in the kingdom before this weekend.

Petition against Education Minister submitted to Parliament

By
Kalino Latu
-

A petition of more than 1,000 signatures against the leadership of Hon ‘Akilisi Pohiva as Minister for Education and Training were presented this morning to the Speaker of the House Lord Tu’ivakano.

Dozen educators including former CEO Emily Moala Pouvalu marched with the petition to Parliament where they were welcomed by the Speaker.

Moala told local media they believed “maladministration, incompetency, destruction or embezzlement of government property” occurred while Hon Pohiva is Minister of Education.

Former MP and Finance Secretary Uhila Liava’a dies age 74

By
Kalino Latu
-

Tonga’s Chairman of the Public Service Commission Sione ‘Uhilamoelangi Liavaʻa has passed away suddenly on Tuesday morning, October 4.

He was rushed to hospital where he was pronounced dead.

His family said he fell unconscious at his home in Tofoa on Saturday.

The former MP and Secretary for Finance was one of the few Tongans who helped ʻAkilisi  Pohiva, Tonga’s Prime Minister pioneered Tonga’s democratic system.

Uhila_1_450x320
Sione ʻUhilamoelangi Liavaʻa

His political career can be traced back into 1970s when he and Hon. Pohiva attended the University of the South Pacific.

The University of the South Pacific gold medal awardee in accountancy along with Hon. Pohiva and four others   were interested in Tongan politics.

It was a group they set up at USP known at the time as Kau Loma that first supported Hon Pohiva in his pursue to bring democracy to Tonga which eventually came to fruition in 2010.

The former Director of the National Reserve Bank of Tonga Board is survived by his wife Susitina and their four children.

Three prison escapees in Ha’apai caught; faced charges over house breaking

By
Kalino Latu
-

Three prisoners who escaped from police custody in Haʻapai have faced court charges over house breaking before they would be transferred back to Tongatapu.

The trio escaped on September 17 but they were captured and back in custody the following day.

Local reports said Peni Inia, Mila Kaufusi and Maikolo Fifita were being transferred from Tongatapu to Haʻapai and while they were there they vanished.

Radio Tonga report said while the trio were on the run they broke into a house in Tongaleleka and escaped with goods in which Police later confiscated.

Government is deadlocked because some top officials don’t like me, Pōhiva says

By
Kalino Latu
-

Tonga’s Prime Minister ʻAkilisi Pōhiva said his government was deadlocked and struggling to move because some government chief executive officers (CEO) and top officials did not like him and his government.

The Prime Minister said this was a big problem for him and he found it really hard to cope.

He said the way the Cabinet and the Privy Council existed at present showed their responsibilities were not “well defined.”

In an interview with Kaniva News at ‘Atalanga, the Tongan official residence in Auckland, last week, Hon. Pōhiva said he thought they should have the power to ensure the CEOs, government commissioners and the Attorney General did what the government wanted for the benefit of the people.

“If the Attorney General does not like me and we are not on the same page, how can we work together if he was chosen to the post,” Hon. Pōhiva said in Tongan.

“Look at the passports scandal.

“We wanted to see it is being done but we do not know what happened.

“This is a big problem for the work we wanted to do so that we moved forward with our development policies.

The Auditor General has announced the Tonga Forest records have been burnt and millions of dollars were unaccounted for, but still no legal action had been taken against those responsible.

Hon. Pōhiva said there was no way the cabinet could do anything about it because it does not have the power over those who supposed to launch a prosecution.

He said the CEOs were elected by the Public Service Commission while the commissioners and the Attorney General were elected by the Privy Council and the government had no say in the process.

Hon. Pōhiva said some top officials especially those who had been appointed to the peerage still stuck to the old system in which royals and the nobility were the priority when it came to matters that dealt with opportunities and privileges.

He said his government wanted to change that mentality and attitude and make sure the people became first.

Radio callers on talkback

The Prime Minister’s concerns were made public  to Tongans in New Zealand and abroad over the Kaniva Tonga’s Radio Programme on Planet FM 104.6 on Monday.

Editor Kalino Lātū said listeners were told they would be alerted when they could be calling the programme.

But while he was talking about how the Prime Minister was interviewed, listeners  started calling, with many saying they could not wait to release their concerns at the issues.

All callers to the talkback program stood by the Prime Minister and wanted change to the Tongan law so that the problem could be solved.

One caller said the news had caused him a headache.

He agreed with the Prime Minister that there were people inside the government who were trying to stop it running smoothly.

“I feel my heart will stop while I am speaking,” he said.

He asked the Prime Minister to be patience as the people causing problems would not last long.

“We love our nation and we did not want to hear this kind of news,” he said.

Another caller wanted to annul the appointment of life peers and their titles.

“We only have one Lord Jesus Christ. What are these Tongan lords for?” he asked.

A female caller said he thought the Prime Minister had the power to remove those who did not want to co-operate and stand by the government.

She suggested Tongans in New Zealand launch a petition to the king asking him to do something about the people Hon. Pohiva was referring to.

She said if the people did not want to petition the King she would write a letter to the king herself.

Another female caller said she felt the Prime Minister and his government had to spend a lot of time cleaning up the mess left behind by former governments.

Another caller said the government had the power to change or pass laws in Parliament so that the government had voices in electing the CEOs, commissioners and the Attorney General.

The main points

  • Tonga’s Prime Minister ʻAkilisi Pohiva said his government was deadlocked and struggling to move because some government chief executive officers (CEO) and top officials did not like him and his government.
  • In an interview with Kaniva News at ‘Atalanga, the Tongan official residence in Auckland, last week, Hon. Pohiva said he thought they should have the power to ensure the CEOs, government commissioners and the Attorney General did what the government wanted for the benefit of the people.
  • The Prime Minister’s concerns were made public to Tongans in New Zealand and abroad over the Kaniva Tonga’s Radio Programme on Planet FM 104.6 on Monday.
  • All callers to the talkback program stood by the Prime Minister and wanted change to the Tongan law so that the problem could be solved.

For more information

Investigation report on Tongan passport scandal to “be completed soon” (Kaniva News)

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